The Berlin Defense Unraveled A Straightforward Guide for Black and White

Catalog Code: B0188NIC

International Master Luis Bernal has unraveled the Berlin and made it accessible for amateur players. His practical guide is fully up to date, explains typical formations and strategies, and presents new ideas and resources in the old Berlin Wall structures.

Seize the Initiative Right from the Start! Are you bored with slow maneuvering in systems such as the the Italian game with d2-d3 and the anti-Berlin? Do you enjoy confrontation in the center and sharp, tactical play? Alex Fishbein shows how the Scotch Gambit can give you exciting yet sound positions where you aim at the enemy king.

The Four Knights has a rich and distinguished history. Like a fine wine, the Four Knights only improves with age, establishing itself as an extremely effective way of meeting 1...e5. On the outside this opening seems deceptively quiet, yet apparently natural moves can often lead to some devastating attacks. This DVD takes you through everything that you need to know in order to play this opening with confidence, starting with calm options and then moving on to the outrageous Belgrade opening.

Brought together for the first time in one volume, International Master Angus Dunnington presents you with an all-new and attacking repertoire based on the move 1d4 while Grandmaster John Emms offers a new arsenal of opening weapons with which to attack your unsuspecting opponents.

Starting Out - 1. d4 & 1. e4 A Reliable Repertoire for the Improving Player

Catalog Code: B0454EM

In these two books, brought together now for the first time in one volume, John Cox and Neil McDonald solve the perennial problems by providing the reader with strong and trusty repertoires with white pieces based on the popular opening moves of 1d4 and 1e4. The recommended lines given here have stood the test of time and are regularly employed by Grandmasters. These books are written in Everyman Chess's distinctive Starting Out style, with plenty of notes, tips and warnings throughout to help the reader to absorb ideas.

Sam Collins has designed a repertoire based on systems with …Bc5 after 1.e4 e5. Each of these lines (built around 3…Bc5 against the Ruy Lopez and the Italian, the Spanish Four Knights with 4…Bc5, 3…Bb4+ 4.c3 Bc5 against the Scotch, and 2…Bc5 against the King’s Gambit) share common aspirations of developing the bishop actively outside the pawn chain, fighting for control of the key d4-square and ultimately supporting attacking ideas on the kingside.

Winning with the Slow - But Venomous - Italian An Easy-To-Grasp Chess Opening for White

Catalog Code: B0181NIC

The Slow Italian may look innocent, but is actually full of venom, because White has a lot of options to create aggressive play by making natural looking moves with his pieces. Müller and Souleidis have created a solid weapon that every amateur chess player will delight in playing. With a foreword by Anish Giri.

The Richter–Veresov Attack (or Veresov Opening) is a chess opening that begins with the moves: 1. d4 d5, 2. Nc3 Nf6, 3. Bg5! The opening dates back as far as the game Marshall-Wolf, Monte Carlo 1902. In modern play it has been used by Spassky, Tal, Smyslov, Bronstein, Larsen and even Karpov.

Despite the advances in computing power, gambit play is still very common, especially among young players, club players and improvers, and it is wise to learn how to defend against these dangerous ideas. You do not want to be wiped out in the opening! On Meeting the Gambits Vol. 1; Gambits after 1.e4, FIDE Senior Trainer Andrew Martin provides you with an excellent selection of repertoire choices and teaches you the right approach to take against gambiteers. Do not let them have their way! You may see this as a course in defensive and counterattacking technique.

The Evans is an attempt to destroy Black in gambit fashion straight out of the opening and giants of previous years such as Adolf Andersson and Paul Morphy played lots of brilliancies with it. But the Evans Gambit has stood up to the test of time and in the modern era players such as Garry Kasparov, Hikaru Nakamura or Wei Yi have tried it with success. This DVD will prove that the gambit is still fully playable and a great way to try and blast Black away right from move one.

Developing a punchy repertoire with 1.e4 requires extensive research, mixed with fine judgement and a good deal of creativity. In this two-volume work, GM John Shaw supplies an ambitious and dynamic arsenal of ideas for White. The repertoire is built around main lines, with many innovative suggestions that will cause no end of trouble to your opponents.

A Simple Chess Opening Repertoire for White A Quick-to-Learn King's Pawn Repertoire with Healthy Development and Attacking Chances

Catalog Code: B0193GB

By carefully choosing variations that lead to similar structures, IM Sam Collins has put together a powerful repertoire book ideal for players with limited study time. White opens with 1 e4 and develops his pieces to natural squares, seeking open lines and the initiative.

Are you well versed in main lines but are you also often surprised by old and forgotten gambit lines? Or are you tired of main lines and do you prefer some easy to learn, yet very dangerous gambits? This is your DVD! In his Gambit Guide Vol. 1 Dutch Grandmaster Erwin l’Ami takes you on a journey through time and shows gambit lines in the Open Games (that is, after 1.e4 e5).

In Volume 2 of his Gambit Guide Dutch Grandmaster Erwin l’Ami brings back the romantic days of chess when pawns were routinely sacrificed in huge numbers! It features such enterprising gambits such as the Marshall Gambit, the Scotch Gambit, the Jänisch Gambit, and the Evans Gambit.

In Playing1.e4 e5 – A Classical Repertoire, Nikolaos Ntirlis offers the best of both worlds: a complete repertoire against 1.e4, built on sound positional principles, which does not require excessive memorization. Against the Spanish the author recommends the Breyer System, one of the most stable, computer-proof options at Black's disposal. The Scotch, Italian, Four Knights and various other sidelines and gambits are handled with the same clarity and efficiency.

Anyone that is primed to face the Ruy Lopez must also be prepared to face a number of White alternatives. This collection of variations make up the Open Games and include not only popular choices such as the Italian Game, Scotch Game, Bishop's Opening, King's Gambit, Vienna Game and Four Knights, but also many tricky sidelines and some wild and wacky gambits. Many of these might not be theoretically strong but can be both daunting and dangerous for the uninformed player. In this book, FIDE Master Martin Lokander tackles all these lines head on and presents a practical repertoire for Black in the Open Games.

Anyone that is primed to face the Ruy Lopez must also be prepared to face a number of White alternatives. This collection of variations make up the Open Games and include not only popular choices such as the Italian Game, Scotch Game, Bishop's Opening, King's Gambit, Vienna Game and Four Knights, but also many tricky sidelines and some wild and wacky gambits. Many of these might not be theoretically strong but can be both daunting and dangerous for the uninformed player. In this book, FIDE Master Martin Lokander tackles all these lines head on and presents a practical repertoire for Black in the Open Games.

Several years ago ChessBase released a DVD focusing on attacking in the Italian Game and Ruy Lopez – it was met with a great deal of positive feedback. Based on the overwhelming number of reader requests, we decided to get to work on another DVD on the subject, concentrating not only on the attacking ideas, but also providing a complete repertoire for White players in both the Bishop’s Opening & the Italian Game - avoiding the very unpleasant Petroff.

Petrov's Defence (also called Petroff's Defence, Russian Game and Russian Defence) is a chess opening characterized by the following moves: 1. E4 e5 2 Nf3 Nf6
Though it has a reputation for being dull, the Petrov offers many possibilities for Black. Grandmasters Karpov, Yusupov, Smyslov, Marshall, Krammik and Pillsbury have frequently played the Petrov as Black.

The Two Knights Defence is one of the oldest opening lines in chess history. The sharp positions, arising after the moves 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5, have intrigued players for many decades! World Champions like Wilhelm Steinitz and Bobby Fischer shaped the opening. This DVD is aimed at players of both sides, giving an objective overview of all relevant theoretical lines. The DVD also includes a database with model games and an interactive section with memory markers and tactics where the viewer can test his newly acquired knowledge.

Nikolai Kalinichenko, an international grandmaster in correspondence player and author of some 40 chess titles, presents here a complete and up-to-date opening repertoire. It is intended for players of attacking style, or for use when the competitive situation demands an aggressive approach. The repertoire is based on 1. e4 as White and the Sicilian Dragon and Leningrad Dutch as Black. Suggestions are also offered against all the opponent's main alternatives.

The Vienna set-up aims for very aggressive play, which often includes sacrifices. But White prefers to be on the safe side, without burning all the bridges and to try to justify his actions from the point of view of positional play as well. At first, he deploys his minor pieces to active positions, then he advances the thematic move f4, castles (usually on the kingside) and begins an attack only after all this. Despite the fact that the move 2.Nc3 has been played for more than a hundred years, there has not been defined a clear-cut scheme for playing this set-up.

In the Grandmaster Repertoire – 1.e4 series, Indian superstar Parimarjan Negi presents his own world-class repertoire. Building on a foundation of tried-and-tested main lines, the author shares a wealth of his innovative analysis to chart a course towards an advantage for White.Volume One covers the French, Caro-Kann and Philidor.

Grandmaster Victor Mikhalevski is a veteran chess trainer with over 15 years of teaching experience. GM Mikhalevski is well-known as a fearless attacking player and in this chess DVD he will instruct viewers on how Grandmasters prepare their opening repertoire for elite competition.

This DVD provides you with a repertoire of attacking lines against: The Scandinavian, Alekhine’s Defence, The Petroff, The Philidor, The Pirc, The Modern Defence (1. e4 g6). Many of these openings are very popular in club chess, yet they are often underestimated by players of the white pieces. Using his wealth of experience playing with 1 e4, Grandmaster Daniel King explains the openings and provides you with an aggressive system against each of them. This is the second part of Daniel King’s project ‘Attack with 1 e4’ (part I dealt with the Sicilian, the French, The Caro Kann and 1...e5). King’s recommendations aim to put your opponent under pressure right from the start of the game, and when players are under pressure, mistakes occur. This is a practical repertoire – if we study openings we want to be sure to use them in our games. After just a few moves, you will be dictating play.

While almost everybody is spending 95% of his opening preparation time on major lines, there are some tricky players including strong GMs (I am not an exception) who prepare for their opponents some side lines, which contain many an underwater reef. I decided to collect those secondary openings in one single DVD. From now on openings such as the Pirc, the Scandinavian and the Alekhine Defences will not appear to you in your nightmares any more. The 1.e4 player should be actually thank Black for choosing these openings, since he is providing White with a better centre, a stable advantage and generally speaking pleasant play. The only thing White needs to do is to spend some time studying the lines. I will not bother you with encyclopaedic approach. There is a more practical way.

Paul Keres. The theory of chess openings. In two books. Open debuts. Tallinn Estonian state. ed. 1949, 1952. 288 p. Before applying the novelty in the opening, make sure you did not write about it. Keres, half a century ago! In depth study, this work has no equal. Materials offered in the book are systematic sampling, and of course, a critical treatment of the vast material that the theory and practice of chess found mostly in the last half century, and which, taken together, form what is generally accepted to call ''opening theory.'' 48).

The Open Games for Black A Complete Black Repertoire with 1. e4 e5 Against Everything but the Ruy Lopez

Catalog Code: B0083EU

A complete black repertoire which has been tested at the highest level. Based on 1 e4 e5 and covering all White replies except the Ruy Lopez, for which the authors have prepared a separate companion volume on the Berlin Defence.

Anyone who plays 1 e4 as White must be prepared not only for Blacks main defences but also an assortment of less popular lines. These, when taken together, represent a significant percentage of the replies you can expect to meet when opening 1 e4.

The Boden-Kieseritzky-Morphy Gambit is lightly regarded and is never played by grandmasters, but it has one of the best records for White of any opening played below the master level. It scores a phenomenal 62% in all games in the chess databases. This book examines an opening which can be quite useful for beginners and amateur chess players. The gambit we will examine (1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.Nf3!? or 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4!?) has been used by Paul Morphy among other strong players. In my view it is as good a gambit as most others.